Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1887-10-15
CURIOUS METHODS OF PUNISHMENT.
The Roman Twelve Tables-Treason In
England-In Persia-At Grand Cairo.

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The Roman Twelve Tables-Treason in
England-In Persia-At Grand Cairo.
There are many curious things in the
history of punishment. In the Roman
twelve tables it is ordained that whoever
shall not be able to bring in witness to
prove his pretensions before the judge
may go and make clamor for three
days before his adversary's dwelling. A
debtor refusing to pay his debt could be
taken home by his creditor, where he
could be tied by the neck or have irons
put on his feet to the weight of fifteen
pounds. 'sIf the debtor be insolvent to
several creditors let his body be cut in
pieces on the third market day. 1t may
be cut into more or fewer pieces; or, if
the creditors consent, let him be sold to
foreigners beyond the Tiber. - An in
cendiary was punished with scourging
and burning to death. False witnesses
We're thrown headlong from the Capitol.
Those who stole what belonged to the
gods were thrown into the Tiber. Slaves
who stole were thrown from the Capitol.
Treason, always considered an odious
crime in England, was punished by
death, the criminal being drawn to the
place of execution by tying the culprit's
feet to the tail of horse and so dragging
him to the scaffold. Arrived at the
place of execution he was hanged by the
neck for a few minutes, and then, while
alive, taken down, bound to a stake, his
heart and viscera cut out and burned
before his face. His head was then cut
off with butchers knife and his body
divided into four parts. Sir Edward
Coke justified this punishment on the
ground of the scriptural punishment of
Bightan, Joab and Judas. Pirates were
hung at low water at the east side
of the tower. When it was found
that the burns made in the hand
could be obliterated, during the reign of
Edward III, it was ordered that criminals
should be burned in the cheek. As the
English laws became less bloody the
crimes for the punishment of which they
were intended became less frequent. In
the decennial periods ending 1920, 1880,
1910 and 1850 the number of executions
were respectively 312, -17S, SO and 81.
The Persians considered parricide SO
awful that they could not believe any one
could be guilty of it, and, therefore, they
had no punishment for it. But the
Egyptians punished the crime by sticking
pointed reeds into every portion of the
criminal and then burning his body upon
a fire of thorns. The Druids punished
parricide by burning alive and the Ro-
mans by drowning.
Some curious punishments are reported
as existing at Grand Cairo about 100
years ago. If baker sold short weight,
or bad bread, for the first offense all the
bread found in the shop was given to the
poor, and then the offender nailed to his
door, sometimes by one ear and some
times by both for the space of twelve
hours. For the second offense, his bread
was distributed as aforesaid, and he re-
ceived the punishment Of the bastinado,
200 or 300 blows on his feet or back.
After this large bread board, heavily
loaded with lead, was put on his Shout
ders, his head sticking through a hole in
the middle. Then he was marched
through the streets until he felt ready to
drop. IF he committed third offense he
was beheaded. If butcher sold short
weight or bad meat, for the first offense
he was tied to post where the sun could
shine upon him all day, then some putrid
flesh was hung close to his face and he
had to pay a money fine. For second
offense he suffered severe corporal pun
ishment, for the third, death. Thieves
and. housebreakers were put to death
after suffering torture. Pickpockets and
thieves taken in the act were beheaded
without trial. A professional house
breaker suffered the most. He was put
naked on camel, his feet being tied be-
meath the animal, then lighted candles
were thrown over his shoulders, the
wicks down, SO that they would burn
upward. The criminal was marched
through the principal streets, and when
the candles were all burned out he was
taken to ''the black square" and there
beheaded. The Earth. sHW